Halloween 5

Halloween 5 was a step down compared to others. A better director probally would have done better with the script, which wasn't that bad.

Donald Pleasence again trys to put away Michael Myers, but this time takes a swat team into the Myers house with him. Well of course they are no match for Myers, but Loomis does manage to capture Myers in chains and beat him to a pulp.

Good performances, but badly filmed. It looks like a made for cable movie.

**/****

Halloween 5, yeah, this was a disappointment, most fans don't really dig this sequel which is understandable. It is kind of stupid or just plain stupid; this is the story that most horror movie sequels try to rip off, the telepathic powers that get really annoying. It seems like every horror movie sequel has to have it, Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street had it, why not include the Halloween franchise as well? Unfortunately I didn't get into it, I think because it was extremely unoriginal and not to mention that the story didn't really continue from the 4th sequel. The ending of Halloween 4 had Jamie turning evil, I guess they just totally dropped that idea which could have been great to see, instead we got a silly and typical horror story that was badly acted, edited, and directed.

Michael Myers makes his way into a small shack by the river owned by a local hermit. Once there, Michael collapses and remains in a comatose state for a full year. On October 30th Michael awakens, kills the hermit, and returns to terrorize Haddonfield, where his young niece, Jamie Lloyd continues to live after nearly being killed by Michael the year before. Jamie has been mute since attacking her foster mother at the end of film 4, but exhibits signs of a telepathic link with her evil uncle. Dr. Sam Loomis realizes that this link exists, and plans to use it to put an end to Michael's reign of terror. Michael begins stalking Rachel and her friend Tina. After both are killed Jamie agrees to put herself in danger to help Loomis stop Michael for good. With Jamie's help, Loomis lures Michael back to the old Myers house. Michael makes many attempts at killing Jamie, finally getting the chance to in the attic. Jamie tries appealing to Michael's humanity by calling him "Uncle". Myers pauses, prompting Jamie to ask to see his face. He takes off his mask, and a lone tear runs down his face. Jamie reaches up to wipe it away, and Michael is thrown into a rage. The killer pursues Jamie, who runs into Loomis. The doctor seems to turn on the girl as he shouts for Michael to come and take her. It turns out that he has used the girl as bait, thus leading Michael to walk beneath a heavy chain net. But you have to see what happens next by watching the movie.

While granted that this movie isn't the worst movie in the world, I do enjoy the Halloween sequels, I think this was a fall in the story line for the Halloween series. It really could have had a lot of potential, but since they dropped a few ideas that were presented in the previous Halloween sequel. Not to mention this is one of the rare times that I wasn't scared by Michael, he's loosing his touch… no, I can't say that, please I can't say that… it's the writing! It's the blasted writing! So if you wanna see the sequels, yeah, do watch it just to see the story continue, but if you are just looking for a scary movie in general, you can skip Halloween 5.

5/10

Sure, they wasted their one chance to change the direction of the Halloween series (the right way). The year long coma is BS, yes, indeed. Sure, the psychic connection between Jamie and Michael is a little goofy, ill-explained, beyond the scope of a Halloween movie, and exists for no real reason, and yes, other people wearing a mask similar to Michael and pretending to be Michael is getting old (not to mention predictable.) The mask doesn't resemble any of the previous masks really, the Myers house had an inexplicable make-over . . . I could keep these complaints rolling for some time (don't even get me started on the man in black), but despite all my reasons to not like this film . . . I prefer it over #4.

I found Halloween 5 to be strangely fun, which horror tends to be when you stop caring for the cast. While I like Danielle Harris and Donald Pleasance in the leads, most of the supporting characters I didn't really like at all, so when Myers starts the party rolling I'm rooting for team Thorn. And this time around, Miky proves he has a dark sense of humor. I especially like his choice in masks in Halloween 5 . . .

But is it scary? No, but there are a few genuine intense moments towards the end as Michael inevitably runs out of victims and closes in on the stars. I liked all the chases involving Danielle Harris and confrontations between Donald Pleasence and evil personified . . . even if said confrontations are on the silly side.

Speaking of Harris, despite her character not being able to talk in the script, she manages to rise far above the material and actually pull it off. Or in other words, while her character was written by a hack and sloppily thrown together, she works wonders with the very little she's given. It makes me really wish she got writing worthy of her performance, but like a professional, she makes the best of it . . . and to think the studio wouldn't let her reprise her role after this? A slap to the face after an insult . . . oy.

I remember reading on the VHS box of Halloween 5 the exclamation, `Michael finally unmasked!' And couldn't help but chuckle as I recalled him being mask-less at least once in every Myers-inclusive Halloween until this film. Granted, this is the first time he, himself, takes it off. Oh well.

As for the film's ending, I can't forgive because it lead to the atrocity known as Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers which felt Halloween 5 was extremely flawed but still fun . . . so it set out to make a sequel that was all flaw and no fun . . . or something.

When the original Halloween was made it was scary because of its gritty realism and believable characters. Part 2 was also an edge-of-seater. But by the time you reach this, Part 5, the tension has gone from the series and Michael Myers has descended from a believable shadow-stalking figure into an unkillable Jason 'Friday the 13th' Voorhees clone.

For what its worth, the plot of this film involves Myers coming after Jamie, who is now in a childrens' psychiatric hospital after attacking her stepmother. The concept of Jamie having a psychic bond with her deranged uncle is interesting, but it's all completely ruined by the constant unfunny attempts at humour, the tedious padding and the lack of likeable would-be victims. Instead of genuine characters all we have here are Porky-style sex-mad teenagers with nothing approaching an IQ between them. There's even a scene set in a barn similar to the one in some of the Friday the 13th films. And Rachel from Part 4 seems to have been reduced to a stereotype blonde airhead whose only purpose in the film is to run around half-naked before being slaughtered. And why does Myers' mask look nothing like the one he wore in the previous films?

One good point in this film is Donald Pleasence, who is at his best as an overwhelming Dr Loomis who dominates his every scene and makes the film worth viewing. There is also an enigmatic Man in the Black Fedora-type figure who leads the film into the far superior Part 6.

Though episode 5 is probably my least favourite of the Halloween saga (not counting H3) i still really enjoyed watching it, because i love the series as a whole and took it for what it was, something most people don't seem to do. Sure, there's some mediocre acting and the usual holes in the plot, but it's an 80's slasher film, what else would you expect? I think its obvious imperfection is its charm. Besides that, it has a few original killings and the scenes where Michael chases Jamie in the Myers house are chilling. The last half hour makes it worth watching. I'd say give it a try if you've seen other Halloween movies and liked them, if not then don't start with this one because it's certainly not one of the best. 6 out of 10 =)